PLC Signal Transmission Problems?
At PCS, we take a special interest at the reasons why a system using our products may not work as expected. Even though we do not design or manufacture transmitters, we are familiar with the leading sources which could be problematic to an X-10 application. We’ve come to the conclusion that two main reasons are to blame. These are signal strength and noise. The reduction of a signal between the transmitter and receiver are a function of the “electrical distance” from one point to the other. The most likely causes reducing X-10 signals include transmissions crossing from one phase to another, capacitive effects suppressing voltage spikes found in powerstrips and appliances, and lengthy wire runs found in large homes. Solutions for low signal levels include using plug-in filters to isolate capacitive “signal sinking” loads such as power strips, using phase couplers / repeaters to enhance transmissions between phases, and, if possible, keeping the X-10 system on one phase of the house. Ex
